Overstock’s tZero ICO Under Review, ICO Extended

In a standard 8-K filing today, Overstock have revealed that their ICO is currently under investigation by the US Securities and Exchange Commission. The result of the disclosure has been an immediate 10% drop in share value. But what’s it all about?

SEC Gets Heavy-handed

The SEC have been looking into increasing numbers of ICOs of late, as they try to determine which could be classed as securities, thereby requiring certain disclosures and registration with the SEC. However, they have also been anxious to clarify that ongoing investigations do not necessarily represent subpoenas, and it would appear that this is also the case with the tZero ICO:

The SEC is trying to determine whether there have been any violations of the federal securities laws, the investigation does not mean that the SEC has concluded that anyone has violated the law.

Source: Wall Street Journal

However, regardless of the intentions, the impact on Overstock and other companies in the same boat has been negative. Many believe that the SEC haven’t been transparent enough with their stance on the crypto market, and that this is now affecting companies.

The tZero ICO itself has caused a fair amount of uncertainty. It has been extended to beyond to months following the failure to raise its stated total. However, the extremely swift way in which the first block amount was raised led to suspicions that the company itself was inflating the total by buying its own shares. This has since been denied, however.

Should the SEC be clearer about the situation with ICOs? Leave us your thoughts.